Body and Self Image
Body and Self Image Body image plays an important role in the life of an adolescent girl. “Adolescents are […] seeking outside information to form a self-identity” (2) and look to the exterior forces to influence their decisions and choices with regards to their physical appearance. Media, parents and friends all play vital roles in defining a healthy or unhealthy self-image in adolescent girls. Due to the external influences in a teen girls' life, weight becomes associated with social status and positive responses from others (8). While "media images are central elements of the appearance culture" (4), "parent pressure to be thin" (7), and "social comparison" (3) with friends were contributing factors to negative self-image. Overall, "early adolescent girls base their self-concept in large part of their perception of the social response to their body” (8) and since “overweight individuals are relatively devalued at...